Monday, October 08, 2007

Museum III.

The SMLE rifle served the British army, Empire and Commonwealth forces very well for almost a century. Was originally developed in 1895? The short magazine being introduced in 1902!

Is reputed to be the fastest bolt action rifle ever developed. Rugged, simple, but effective.

"The Lee-Enfield was chambered for the .303 British cartridge, and featured a ten-round box magazine"

"The Lee-Enfield was, in various marks and models, the British Army's standard bolt-action, magazine-fed, repeating rifle for over 60 years from (officially) 1895[1] until 1957[2], although it remained in British service well into the early 1960s and is still found in service in the armed forces of some Commonwealth nations."

In the hands of trained marksmen, this rifle can be deadly in a manner not usually thought of. That ten round magazine gives the skilled rifleman an advantage to begin with. The British Army has always put a premium on marksmanship, especially among those troops that are long-term-serving soldiers.

"The fast-operating Lee bolt-action and large magazine capacity enabled a trained rifleman to fire between 20 to 30 aimed rounds a minute, making the Lee-Enfield the fastest military bolt-action rifle of the day. The current world record for aimed bolt-action fire was set in 1914 by a musketry instructor in the British Army — Sergeant Instructor Snoxall — who placed 38 rounds into a 12" target at 300 yards in one minute"

[that Sergeant Instructor put on a display of marksmanship that would be difficult for even a shootist of Olympic caliber to equal or exceed??!! Does not seem possible to shoot that fast and accurately over such a distance. AND WITH A BOLT ACTION RIFLE TOO!! The man would have had to reload three times as well!! Amazing.]

British troops, encountering the German for the first time during World War One [1914], used PLUNGING FIRE from a range of 800 yards to destroy advancing German troop columns. This sort of tactic REQUIRES HIGHLY TRAINED, DISCIPLINED, AND SKILLED RIFLEMEN!

"To drop ten targets at 400 yards in less than a minute was regarded as good but by no means exceptional."

[British forces in Korea, 1951, still using the SMLE and displaying proficiency with same!!]

A rifle that is STILL IN USE. In the hands of competent riflemen, this is now and always will be a deadly weapon!

"Photos from the current civil war in Nepal show that the government troops are being issued SMLE Mk III/III* rifles to fight the Maoist rebels . . . Lee-Enfield rifles were also used by numerous warring factions in the Solomon Islands during the early 2000s, with news footage showing one faction's fighters using Lee-Enfield No.4 rifles that they had taken from government armouries."

"The guerrillas [Nepali Maoists] are armed with a mix of weapons. The most common is the Lee Enfield SMLE bolt action rifle in .303 caliber."

Even beyond Nepal and the Solomon Islands, THE SMLE CONTINUES TO THIS DAY TO BE THE STANDARD ISSUE RIFLE FOR THE CANADIAN RANGERS!!

"The previously issued weapon of the Canadian Rangers is the .303 British calibre Lee Enfield No 4 rifle, with 200 rounds of ammunition each year. While the Lee Enfield No 4 rifle is an old WWII-era, bolt-action rifle, it has proved very reliable in sub-zero Arctic conditions. Rangers are still permitted to carry the weapon, but, as they are no longer expected to engage enemy forces, the requirement to carry a firearm has been dropped."

[the requirement has been dropped, BUT THE NEED FOR CARRYING A RIFLE SUCH AS THE SMLE HAS NOT CEASED!! A RANGER MAY HAVE TO FORAGE FOR FOOD BY KILLING A SEAL OR A CARIBOU [REINDEER]. AND DANGER EXISTS MAINLY FROM POLAR BEARS!! YOU MAY HAVE A BEAR ATTACK YOU WITH THE INTENTION OF KILLING AND EATING YOU! USE THAT SMLE IN SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES!]